The Not So Festive Duds

The little man was upset when the girls got a new skirt for the festive period (he really wanted one!) ....so I cut into some red and white ticking but I realised that there was far too much white in for my messy boy. So we added some panels of fine baby cord in blue and red, appliqued a t-shirt and we are ready for Santa...Of course my husband thinks they look like American pants..Oops..that wasn't the plan..I just wanted to put some colour into his new duds.

And the winner's are....

Sarah-Jo and Lynda. Thanks ladies. Email me your postal address to kmaldred@bigpond.com and I will pop your button bracelets in the post.

Something For The Teachers...

The girls had their last day of preschool yesterday..oh so sad. We were fortunate enough to have an amazing teacher and assistant. The girls have really come out of their shells and we are now ready for big school. I really wanted to gift the teachers something that will remind them of the girls and that didn't involve chocolates and wine. So using this tutorial, I set to work. It involved a 5am start yesterday morning (there is nothing like leaving things to the last minute) but I am happy to say they were ready to deliver to the teachers by 9am. Its an awesome tut..I think next time I might make my strips longer and knot them around the foam for something a little different. They look lovely (if I do say so myself). The teachers were thrilled and I hope that every Christmas they will pull them out and think of my lovely girls ......

And what about this awesome giveaway. Fingers crossed I win something...

And don't forget my giveaway...

Christmas Giveaway

I am having a giveaway to celebrate Christmas....and to say thanks for following my blog.

I have been busy making a lot of my Chrissy pressies this year including these vintage button bracelets.

And I have made an extra one just for you lovely readers. As you can see from the below photos its a combination of grey, silver, gold and purple buttons.

So all you need to do is leave a comment and tell me your favourite Christmas Tradition, before 7pm on Sunday 20th December and I will randomly draw a winner.

If you want to blog about it..that's okay too. Just let me know in your comment and I will pop you in for another entry.

Merry Christmas

Check back on Sunday night so that the lucky winner can email me their address details and I can put the bracelet in the post first thing Monday morning and hopefully you will have it just in time for Christmas.

Baby Sewing

Wow...what a whirlwind the last 2 weeks have been - concerts galore including Angelina and The Wiggles, Preschool concerts and afternoon teas for the teachers. We have our last day at Preschool on Thursday, which I am a little sad about but we are also very excited about what next year holds as the girls move into Kindy.

I have been pushing myself to get some sewing done for Christmas presents and all the little baby's that have arrived the last few weeks.

Burp Cloths for Baby E. These have been made from flannel bunny rugs and a yellow cloth nappy that we never used for the littlest man. I made burp cloths for Baby E's big brother 2 years ago and his Mum and Dad loved them. So I thought some updated ones for the newest member of the family would make a great pressie. I used this tutorial for the shape.

Festive singlets and baby bloomers made from linen for Baby E and Baby T. Perfect for the hot days we are having at the moment.

And a little set for Baby C (this one is for my sisters best friend). My take on the Otto Aqua shorts and a little top to match, all in festive colours.

And in other exciting news.. I am flying out to here on the 26th December for a week to visit my sister. I am so excited!!!

Festive Sewing...

I realised on Friday that we are on the down hill slide to Christmas and the girls had nothing special to wear for our upcoming concerts - Angelina Ballerina and The Wiggles, preschool graduation and Christmas parties. Their wardrobe is bursting at the seams but its nice to spoil them...

3 hours at the machine, including cutting and making my own bias binding and we have two little duck skirts. Prefect for twirling our way through the festive season. The white material is from an Egyptian Cotton Sheet that my sister left behind when she moved OS this year and the aprons, which are attached to the front and back are from Lizzy House's range..Red Letter Day. They looked super cute at the Angelina concert yesterday and I got stopped by two women and asked where could they buy them from...

Work Shirt Tops....

On one of my op shop visits I happened across two lovely men's shirt - Country Road & Abercrombie & Fitch....they came home with me and are now...

Two little summer tops, perfect for the 39 degree days we have been experiencing.

The girls love them and have nicknamed them.."work shirt tops" as they are just like Dad's work shirts.

The only thing I would change next time is longer sleeves so that they cover the girls shoulders a bit more...

It's nice to be sewing again...

My Last $12....

I ventured into my local salvos with $12 in my wallet. My last few visits have been really disappointing but today the thrifting Gods were smiling.... For $12 I got.....

A retro looking bedside table that I plan to strip back and put into the girls room

and some gorgeous red and white linen that will turn into some nappy covers for all the little boys that have been born in the last two weeks

What bargains have you found at the Op Shop lately?

I Fear....

Cushions Covers and Zippers......but I conquered my fear of cushion covers the weekend with this sweet little cover that we whipped up for our special friend Mia. It was so easy and I have lots of plans for updating my lounge with some throw cushions. I used this tut and a free print from the Otto website for the Babushka Doll. She is not perfect but made with lots of love...and I ran out of time to embroider her face, which is probably a good thing knowing how ordinary my hand sewing abilities are.

Happy 5th Birthday Mooska xox

Vroom Vroom Set

A tiny bit of crafting has been happening in this house. We have just finished school holidays and coupled with a 2 year old that has forgotten how to sleep..there has been no time or energy for much! I have a few things cut out and ready to sew..I am just waiting for the sewing bug to return. I have been buying some fabric online from the US..while our dollar is lovely and strong..its becoming quiet an addiction!

I did manage to finish this little set for my parents to give to my girlfriend that had this little boy back in June. A basic pair of wide legged pants and a little Osh Kosh top picked up for a bargain price..pressies don't get much. better

And in other exciting news....I won this giveaway over at Amanda's blog. I bought the other two prints to go with the series as we are decorating the little man's room in a transport theme. Oh my they are so lovely. My photos don't do them any justice. Thanks Amanda I am thrilled to bits..now to find some white frames and we can hang them on the wall

I am planning to share the giveaway love very soon...with something special!

5...

Two special little girls in our house turned 5 last week!

Wow 5....we are amazed at how far you have come

You started off as two tiny little scraps, entering the world 11 weeks early

And now we have two beautiful, caring, independent (and at times stubborn) little individuals

You are best friends

You are like little sponges, soaking up new information everyday and learning in leaps and bounds

We are so proud of you both

Happy 5th Birthday

We love you bottle tops...to the moon and back XOXO

The Fairy Queen Cake

The Cupcake Spectacular we shared with friends at the park

Cupcake Toppers - made by the very talented Tammy at Sweet Art Diva .

Thank You Gifts

Another Great Giveaway....

from Sarah-Jo . I have admired this material for a long time..its lovely. Fingers crossed that I win. Thanks Sarah-Jo.

and this lovely giveaway at Twinkle Star Art. These prints would look lovely in the little man's room!

Spring Fling Skirt

The kids were invited to a 3rd birthday party on the weekend, by the little girl who lives over the back fence. They have just moved into their house so its nice to get to know some more neighbours.

Having just returned from a week on the beautiful Gold Coast I was feeling pretty unmotivated to sew or do much. But I gathered my strength and dived into my stash. I am loving what I came up with. A double layered twirly skirt, with vintage sheeting on the bottom layer and lovely cupcakes on the top.

We added a treasure pocket (this is what the girls have called them as they are perfect for collecting all sorts of treasures, like shells, sticks and bottle tops!). It came together nicely and I can see myself making some more of these in the near future. I did make the pocket a little on the large size (it was gaping open) but I managed to fix this by adding a button and buttonhole to the pocket. Prefect for Canberra spring weather with a little pair of leggings underneath.

Party Season...

I was only saying to someone last month that the girls didn't seem to have made that many friends at preschool. There were lots of parties happening and no invites for us (they weren't aware but I was hearing other parents talk about this party and that one..it actually made me sad to think that people were struggling to break through the special bond my girls share).

Well that all changed and we have had two preschool parties in the last two weeks. Yay to new friends!

I am really struggling with what to buy 5 year olds. There is so much commercialised stuff out there! So for our new friend S we made this superheroes cape (I used a tutorial that I found online and now I can't remember where I found it..sorry) and teamed it with a canvas to paint, some acrylic paints and paint brushes and for our other friend S I made a little twirly skirt and appliqued t-shirt and teamed it with 4 pretty butterfly clips and a sparkly lip gloss. I probably spent $20-$25 on each child. Not factoring in fabric (as it was all from my stash) or time. So please share your thoughts with me..Is this enough ??(baring in mind that its from two little people). What else can I do for 5 year old pressies??

And here is a sneak peek at some lounge pants I made for my sisters birthday. Vintage sheets and a lovely vintage linen tablecloth used for the cuffs..mmm comfy. I hope she likes them. The jewellery is from Zaruff in Sydney. You can buy it online. I have one of their hand crafted bracelets, made from semi-precious stones and venetian glass beads. Its chunky but I love it. They often have some great sales and you can pick up some of the jewellery at half price!

Increasing My Fabric Stash

I just thought I would share some of my fabric bargains that I have managed to score over the last month. Now its time to start planning some summer sewing.......

$2.50 for vintage cotton plisse at a country Op shop. Its a bit sad that when you go home to see your family..you have to have a good trawl through the local Op shops!

Linens, denim and a spotty drill, along with some buttons and embroidery thread picked up at the YMCA Garage Sale on Saturday

3 clowns also from the YMCA Garage Sale..they were too cute to leave behind

My splurge on fabrics from the US. I highly recommend this shop. Their service is fantastic.

Cottons from my parents local Spotlight..all for $2 a metre.

My spotlight never has anything this good. I just wish I had gotten more!





And some fabric from my local fabric store. They had a sale last month with 25% off quilting cottons for members.

Polka Dot Swap

Look what arrived in the mail for me last week. Yippee. My Polka Dot Swap Parcel from Bianca. Wow I have been so spoilt. After such a crazy week, it was lovely to sit down and savour all these goodies. Thanks Bianca.

3 lovely pieces of material - spotty velvet, spotty plisse and some gorgeous fabric for the little man

A lovely little bag (which I have had to hide rom the girls) and a covered note pad which already has a permanent home in my hand bag.

For Bianca, I made the Hostess Apron from this pattern . It was my first attempt at an apron and I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly it came together. I will be definitely making this one again. And a flower brooch, using some of my all time fav fabric and the Prints Charming Pattern I got at the craft show in Sydney. Lots of fun. Thanks to Stacey for all her hard work in organising the swap.

****On another note..is anyone else having trouble uploading images to blogger??******

Ahoy Me Hearties..

Naff title..I know but I couldn't help myself!!

I am back from some time at my parents on the NSW mid north coast. Ahh..it was lovely. The weather was nice and I was kid free for a few days. Woohoo. Thanks to my lovely husband who held down the fort at home!!

Before I left I made this little outfit for my friend's new baby. After 7 years of heartache they welcomed a little boy 4 weeks ago. I am so happy for them, they totally deserve this little man!

I started off with the Ahoy baby shorts from Ottobre 3/2009 but made a few amendments along the way. I lengthened them, didn't add the seam allowance and added a cuff. Fingers cross they fit. They are made from a lovely blue and white striped linen that I inherited from my Granner's stash and cuffed the hems and waistband in some gorgeous kokka Dancing Rabbits.

And a little pair of reversible cloth shoes. I found this material at Spotlight last year a nice spotty linen and some cotton covered in animals. They are lined with little pigs and a wool flannel that I found at the Op shop. I made size 9-12 months for next winter.